‘Kuch bol deta hun, jo mic pe pakda jata hai’: Rohit clears air over stump mic chatters

NEW DELHI: Rohit Sharma‘s stump mic chatters gained a lot of attention during the recently-concluded India-England Test series as his one liners went viral on social media.
Having earlier clarified that he doesn’t do it deliberately, the Indian skipper opened up on the issue again saying that his remarks occasionally get picked up by the stump mic.
He emphasized that his intent is not to harm anyone but rather to ensure that the youngsters fulfill their responsibilities effectively.
“I really enjoyed handling all the youngsters in the field – I have told somethings in mic but it’s not to hurt anyone, just make sure that they are on job & think about the team – I am so pleased that everyone was engaged to it – I hope we play lots of cricket together, really loved it,” Rohit said during a chat on Team Ro’s Instagram handle.
Rohit also praised the performance of the debutants and described the series as one of the most challenging in his Test career.
“A five Test match series is always tough, always hard, a lot of challenges through that one and a half to two months that we need to go through. It was a very different experience to play that five Test series and against an opposition like England, we knew it was never going to be easy. We have to be at our best and certainly towards the end, I could say that we are at our best to come out on top on four occasions. So very, very pleased with how we played that series.”
The series also challenged Rohit the captain and he enjoyed finding solutions to the various challenges he faced.
“As a captain, the series made me think about a lot of stuff as to what we need to do, how we can stop these guys, how we can put pressure on them. There were a lot of talks behind the scenes. Luckily, I have got a superb support staff around me who are there to help and guide me,” he added.
Rohit highlighted the display of the youngsters as a major positive from the series and was impressed by their approach.
“I really enjoyed playing with the youngsters. All of them are very mischievous. I knew most of them well and what their strengths are and how they want to play the game. It was just me talking to them about how good they are and the good things they have done in the past. The way they responded to me and Rahul bhai (coach Rahul Dravid) was superb.”
Rohit was moved by the youngster’s stories and he cited the example of Sarfaraz Khan, saying he had seen his journey, having played against his father as a youngster.
“I was just lost in their debuts. I was enjoying their debuts so much because their parents were there. There was so much emotion. I have played with Sarfaraz’s father in Kanga league when I was very young. His father was a left handed batter. He was an aggressive player and very well known in Mumbai cricket circles. I wanted to acknowledge his effort and hard work that had paid off with his son playing for India. I just wanted to tell him that his son’s Test cap belongs as much to him as his son.”